Dr. Aaron Catledge Awarded NSF Grant

Congratulations are in order for Dr. Aaron Catledge. He has been awarded a new NSF DMR award as a PI starting a new area of research in UAB physics. The Project is titled: New frontiers in synthesis of high-entropy transition metal borides enabled by microwave-induced plasma.

The significance of this project is that it addresses the need for advanced ceramics as a key enabling technology for many applications in aerospace, defense, power generation, and processing industries having significant national impact. The study of materials designed for operation under harsh conditions is essential to meet a range of challenges—from creating better turbines, reactors, and batteries to developing future energy systems. 

You can read the full technical and non-technical summary here.

Best wishes to Dr. Catledge the very best in the execution of this award!

Physics graduate student Kallol Chakrabarty awarded EPSCoR Graduate Research Scholars Program award

Congratulations to Kallol Chakrabarty on being awared one of five Graduate Research Scholars Programs award.

UAB News reported: Five University of Alabama at Birmingham graduate students in the College of Arts and Sciences and Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine were awarded Graduate Research Scholars Program awards through the Alabama Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research. The awards for UAB’s five selected graduate students total more than $118,000 and will apply for the upcoming fall 2022 semester.  

The Graduate Research Scholars Program is designed to strengthen and enhance the research capacity of eight participating Alabama EPSCoR institutions by providing graduate student support for students performing federally funded EPSCoR research. The students in the UAB Graduate School represent the next generation of researchers and innovators for the advancement of Alabama’s high-tech human resource capacity. Read the full article here.

REU Alumni Update: Aaditya Rau

Congratulations to 2019 REU, Aaditya Rau who graduated Spring 2022 from Johns Hopkins University. Aaditya graduated with a double major in the fields of Engineering Mechanics and Applied Mathematics & Statistics and a minor in Mathematics. He will be attending graduate school at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, MA under the Computational Science and Engineering program with a home department in Aeronautics/Astronautics.

In addition, since his time here at UAB, he received the Goldwater Scholarship in 2021, and just received the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship (GRFP) to fund my graduate study.

Congratulations to Aaditya and we wish him the very best.

CNMB Partners in $20 Million Statewide Effort Funded by NSF

Nine Alabama universities and one private firm are partnered in a new $20 million, five-year effort led by the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) to develop transformative technologies in plasma science and engineering (PSE) funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).

The grant is entitled “Future Technologies enabled by Plasma Processes” (FTPP) and will be for a five-year duration (2022-2027) to explore plasma synthesized novel materials, surface modified biomaterials, food safety and sterilization, and space weather prediction.

Yogesh Vohra, Ph.D., associate dean for University of Alabama at Birmingham’s (UAB) College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) and professor university scholar in the Department of Physics, serves as a co-principal investigator and UAB’s Institutional (continue reading here).

REU Alumni Update Reshu Chandra

Reshu Chandra participated in our 2021 Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program. She graduated from UAB on Saturday, April 30, 2022 with a major in Neuroscience and minors in Chemistry and Philosophy, Summa Cum Laude with High Distinguished Honors from the Science & Technology Honors Program. This upcoming year, she will be serve as a research intern with the UAB Center for Exercise Medicine while applying to medical schools. Reshu recently received the “Excellence in Service” Award and the “Exceptional Service & Leadership” Award through UAB as well as induction into the Order of Omega Honor Society, which recognizes the top 3% of the Greek community on campus.

Congratulations to Reshu and we wish her much success

Dr. Yogesh Vohra Receives $540k DOE NNSA Grant

Congratulations to Dr. Yogesh K. Vohra for being the recipient of a $540k grant from U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration.

Yogesh Vohra, Ph.D., associate dean in the University of Alabama at Birmingham College of Arts and Sciences and professor university scholar in the Department of Physics, has been awarded a three-year, $540,000 grant from the United States Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration as part of the department’s Stewardship Science Academic Alliances Program.

Vohra’s grant is one of 36 awards totaling $21 million allocated to supporting research activities in areas of physical sciences and engineering. The goal of the grants is to provide opportunities for scientific collaboration between the academic community and scientists at the national labs.

You can read the full UAB News story here.

2015 REU Moriah Smoot

2015 REU Moriah Smoot, Esq always keeps us updated on her career path. She recently contacted us and provided us with an updated bio (below).

Moriah holds a Bachelor of Science in Metallurgical Engineering, a Juris Doctorate from the University of Alabama, and is a licensed attorney in the State of Alabama. In October 2021, Moriah passed the Patent Registration Exam and will soon begin work at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) as a Patent Examiner. She is a registered mediator currently conducting Pro Bono mediations for the 10th Judicial Circuit Court of Alabama serving Jefferson Count.

She is the former Research Technology Analyst at The University of Alabama Office for Innovation and Commercialization. Her areas of interest include metals, medical devices, and regulatory affairs. She has an appreciation for the growing impact of technology on global health and how it can be used to improve the daily lives of individuals.

We wish Moriah much success in her new position and throughout her career journey.

Now Recruiting for 2022 REU

NSF Division of Materials Research (DMR) supported Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) site at the University of Alabama at Birmingham is inviting applications for the Summer 2022. REU-projects may include, but not be limited to, in five research clusters:   (1) computational materials research/machine learning (2) materials under extreme conditions (3) materials for energy applications, (4) materials for sensors and laser applications, and (5) biomaterials for implants, tissue engineering and drug delivery applications. This REU experience will be offered as an in person research model as well as a hybrid model which will include fully remote participation for computational research projects and partly remote and partly on ground lab experiences for experimental research projects (depending on the research project).

The undergraduates will carry out the analysis of data generated in their research projects and make presentations on completed research to faculty mentors and other undergraduates participating in this program. All participants are required to participate a campus-wide expo at the end of the program.

The program will offer 10-weeks flexible summer program during May 22, 2022 – July 29, 2022. The program will pay $6,000 over the entire 10-week period involving 400 hours of research with a faculty mentor at UAB (based on a 40 hour work week).

PLEASE SHARE WITH UNDERGRADUATES.
 
For program information contact Program Director Yogesh Vohra (ykvohra@uab.edu) and for application questions contact Program Coordinator Charita Cadenhead (charita@uab.edu).

The application deadline is April 1, 2022.  Learn more at https://sites.uab.edu/cnmb/research-experiences-for-undergraduates/   and apply here:  https://sites.uab.edu/cnmb/research-experiences-for-undergraduates/application-process/

2021 REU Audrey Collins Presents at APS Gaseous Electonics Conference

Written by Audrey Collins

Thanks to the University of Alabama at Birmingham Summer REU program, I was able to present my research at the 2021 APS Gaseous Electronics Conference. It was an amazing opportunity to learn more about my research and about the subject of plasma physics in general.

Due to a significant spike in COVID-19 cases in Alabama, experts advised that holding the conference digitally, rather than in person, would be the safest option for all participants. This was my first academic conference, and despite the fact that it was virtual, I felt the same levels of pressure and excitement as if it had been held in person. Some aspects of a virtual conference were more advantageous, such as the option to watch sessions on demand, which allowed me to watch more of the conference than I would have been able to if the conference had been conducted in person.

After watching a few speakers, I was intimidated to be in the midst of so many amazing minds, and I was apprehensive about how my presentation would compare to theirs. I had to reassure myself that I was just as deserving of being there as they were, and that I shouldn’t compare myself to them.

A Zoom meeting titled “Women in Science” was one of the live events I attended. Several successful female scientists moderated the event, sharing their experiences as women in a male-dominated profession. I appreciated attending this conference as it was educational and refreshing to hear from women who had had similar experiences to myself and how they overcame gender bias. The fact that the number of women in science is increasing every day and that the field of science is changing to become more inclusive and tolerant left me feeling encouraged after the conference to continue with my studies and research in science.

I was able to present my findings at my live poster session with ease and confidence thanks to extensive preparation with Dr. Renato Camata, my research mentor throughout the summer REU program, as well as with our research group. My experience at the Gaseous Electronics Conference gave me the confidence to present scientific findings in front of other professionals, and it served as good practice for larger conference presentations that I may participate in in the future.